When Rey was alone with Ben, she could pretend that none of their problems existed, that they didn't need to worry about the Resistance, the First Order, or Palpatine. It was too easy to forget the future they were gifted the ability to prevent.

Sometimes Rey wished that neither of them had the Force, that they were two normal people who could sit out this conflict, but mostly, she was grateful the Force had brought them together. Without it, they wouldn't share this connection, they wouldn't have met, and he wouldn't have been saved.

A life without Ben wasn't a life she wanted to imagine.

She looked down at him and smiled at how peaceful he looked. Whenever they shared a bed, the tension left his body and he looked younger. She wished he always looked this relaxed. Maybe after they won they would be able to spend every night together like this.

Rey laid back down and rested her head on Ben's chest. She let the steady thrum of his heart lull her to sleep.

…

Morning brought with it worry about what was to come. Rey had a bad feeling that tensions would continue to escalate instead of dissipate like she hoped they would.

Ben trailed his hand up her arm, causing her to shiver. "Good morning," he said in a low voice, and then he kissed her shoulder.

"Good morning." She started to sit up, but Ben pulled her back down and held her in his arms.

"Don't get up," he said, his lips next to her ear, "not yet." He pressed his lips against her jaw.

"Okay, you've convinced me."

Ben kissed his way down her neck, and Rey ran her hands through his hair. He had the best ideas. She wanted to stay here with him. They had been going progressively further every time they were alone, and Rey was excited to find out where their explorations would take them today. Ben brought his hand to her hip, and his fingers trailed beneath her leggings. She wanted–

A loud knock at their door interrupted them. It was followed by a growl. Chewie had brought breakfast, and he wanted them to eat before it got cold.

Rey sighed. "We'll be out soon."

Chewie told them to hurry up, and then he left. It sounded like he was laughing as he walked away.

"I guess we're getting up now," Ben said with a groan.

"We'll have more time later," Rey promised. At least she hoped they would. "I'm going to get ready. When I'm done, could you do my hair again?" She bit her lip, suddenly shy.

"Of course." He brushed a loose strand of hair out of her face. "The same style?"

Rey nodded. "I liked it."

He smiled. "So did I."

…

Rey looked in the mirror as Ben braided her hair. She liked the look of concentration on his face, it was the same look he had worn when they had fought and when they had translated the Jedi text, but this time it was for a happier reason. He focused on her with the same intensity she focused on him.

Ben had become as important to her as breathing. His faith in her gave her strength she hadn't known she had, and his affection for her made her feel cherished in the way she craved. She hoped that he knew how much she cared for him.

He knew how to show her affection through soft touches and kind words, but both of those were things she was only now learning how to do. She had never had an example of either to follow, but Ben had the example of his parents.

All Rey knew how to do was protect what was hers.

...

They joined Han and Chewie in the main hold for breakfast. Chewie had gone out and got them all a large assortment of food. Rey tried not to think about why Chewie didn't want them to leave the Falcon.

D-O joined them, and at first Rey thought the droid wanted to see them, but then she realized it was trying to get away from the porg that followed it into the room. "Go away," D-O said.

The porg looked up at the droid with sad eyes.

"The porg isn't going to harm you," Rey said. "They're friendly."

Han laughed. "They're pests. If we don't keep an eye on them, they'll eat through our circuitry."

D-O gave an alarmed beep. "Go away," he repeated, rolling around in circles.

Ben sighed. "Come over here, and I'll protect you."

D-O looked between Ben and the porg, deciding which was the bigger threat, and rolled over to Ben's legs. "Thank you."

Rey raised her eyebrows. "What are you going to do if the porg comes closer?"

Ben shrugged. "Shoo it away?"

Chewie gave a loud laugh. "Good luck," he roared.

The porg watched them as they ate breakfast. Chewie offered it some meat, but it shook its head. Rey wondered what they ate. It must have been something on the Falcon considering how quickly they multiplied.

The porg didn't come any closer to D-O, but the droid didn't stop staring at it. Whatever the droid had been through had made it incredibly skittish. Rey wondered what they could do to make it feel safe with them.

…

After breakfast, they lingered in the main hold, none of them wanting to find out what was happening outside the safety of the Falcon.

Ben shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and Rey wondered what was on his mind. "Did Mom tell you?" he asked, looking at Han and then back down at his hands.

Han leaned forward. "Tell me what?"

Ben stared at Rey like he was asking for permission, so she gave him a slight nod. "That we're from the future," he said, blurring out the words.

Han turned to Chewie who shrugged and then turned back to Ben. "Are you serious?"

"Yes," Ben said.

Rey held her breath, waiting for the inevitable denial, but Han surprised her.

Han slumped back into his seat. "I'm guessing it wasn't a good future?" he asked, without even a hint of doubt.

Ben's eyes widened. "You believe me?"

Rey's heart broke a little at how surprised he sounded.

Han ran his hand through his hair. "I don't understand the Force, but I know you do, so if you say you're from the future, I'm going to take you at your word."

Rey let out an exhale, relieved that they didn't have to defend themself, that they didn't have to work to convince Han.

"Thank you," Ben, his voice small.

Han looked at Rey. "You both came back?"

"Yes," she said, imagining for the first time what all this would have been like if she was alone.

"Good," Han said, "I'm glad you had each other."

Chewie nodded in agreement.

Ben's hand brushed against her thigh. She looked over at him and had a slight smile on his face. She could tell how much his dad's words meant to him.

…

Rey mentioned wanting to gather their belongings and bring them back to the Falcon. Han had thought it was a great idea and wanted to go for them.

Rey crossed her arms. "I can go."

Han shook his head "That's not a good–"

"I'll go with her," Ben said.

Han pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's not what I meant."

"We'll be back soon," Rey said. She wanted to know where they stood with the Resistance. Staying on the Falcon wouldn't give them that information.

…

Everyone kept their distance, which should have been better than a direct confrontation, but it left Rey uneasy.

Ben opened the door to their room and abruptly stopped. He put his hand on his lightsaber, ready to face a threat.

Rey did the same. "What's wrong?" she asked in what she hoped was a calm voice.

Ben walked into the room so that he wasn't blocking the door. "This," he said, gesturing at the damaged room. "This is what's wrong."

The room was a mess of overturned furniture. The walls were covered with insults and threats. The words had been painted in the same shade of orange as the T-70 X-wing starfighters the Resistance used.

It looked wrong seeing a colour she associated with the Resistance being used in such a vile way. They were supposed to be better than this.

Rey's eyes were drawn to the one threat that was larger than the rest.

DIE FIRST ORDER SCUM

Rey's blood boiled. How dare they?

She looked over to Ben and followed his gaze to the word he was looking at.

MONSTER

She had once called Ben that, and he had once thought of himself that way – sometimes still thought of himself that way. Rey tightened her hold on her lightsaber.

She let her eyes drift around the room until another insult caught her eye. Lower to the ground, in smaller lettering, there was more writing, this time about her.

KYLO REN'S WHORE

Rey's hands were shaking from anger. She tried to block Ben from seeing that one, but she must have been too obvious in her attempt to hide it from him because he sucked in a sharp breath.

"They have no right," he said, sounding more like Kylo Ren in that moment than he had in any other since they came back to this time.

She reached out to touch his arm – waiting to offer some comfort – but he flinched away from her. She tried not to take his reaction personally.

Ben's shoulders were raised and he paced around the room furiously. His eyes were dark and his jaw was tense.

Rey bit her lip. "Let's see if we can find our belongings." She was worried about what could have been done to them, especially their gifts from Lando.

Rey hadn't shown Ben everything Lando had given her. Like Ben, she had been given some clothes, but she had also been given some jewelry. It was the type that went in hair, which had confused Rey until Ben had braided her hair for the first time. She wanted to surprise Ben with it.

"I'll look over here," Ben said, nodding towards the refresher.

For all the destruction that was done to the room, Rey was relieved to find their bags were unopened. Whoever had done this must have been in a hurry because it's not like anything had been hidden. "I've got our bags."

"Good," Ben said.

"What about our stuff in the refresher?"

"Nothing worth keeping," he said, and the way he said it told her that she didn't want to look in the refresher. Whatever it was, Red decided that she didn't need to know.

Ben swore under his breath, and Rey saw him looking at another threat on the wall.

KILL THE WHORE

A chill passed through Rey. "Ben," she said, drawing his attention away from the words, "we should go."

He didn't move. It was like he didn't hear her.

Rey put down their bags and stepped closer. This time she cupped his cheek, and he looked down at her. "We should go," she repeated.

Ben nodded and grabbed one of the bags. He took her hand, and they walked out of the room together.

Rey wouldn't let the room's destruction tarnish their happy memories of the space.

…

"There you are," Finn said as they left the room. "General Organa wants to see–" Finn stopped abruptly, taking in the looks on their faces – "what happened?"

Rey and Ben both stepped aside, allowing Finn to look inside the room. When he came back out, he was paler than he was when he walked in. "Follow me," he said in a clipped voice.

…

Leia was waiting for them in her office. Finn took a seat and Rey and Ben followed his example. Leia joined them at the table.

"Our room was vandalized," Rey said, breaking the silence.

Ben rubbed the back of his neck. "It wasn't that bad."

Rey gave him a confused look.

Finn let out a startled laugh. "It was pretty bad."

Ben shrugged. "It could have been worse."

"What type of damage?" Leia asked Rey.

"Overturned furniture. Insults." Rey swallowed. "Threats."

Leia squeezed her eyes shut. "I was afraid of this." She let out a deep sigh and opened her eyes. "You'll need to leave soon."

Ben's jaw tightened. "Leave?"

Leia nodded. "You need to find the Sith wayfinders."

"You believe us?" Rey asked, hoping that they would be able to use their future knowledge to do some more good. If Leia believed them, every one else would soon follow. Rey wanted to–

"No," Ben said in a dark voice, "she's trying to get rid of us."

Leia's eyes widened. "Ben–"

Ben crossed his arms. "Am I wrong?"

"This is your chance to prove to us that you're from the future," Leia said, not denying her son's words.

Ben pursed his lips. "Convenient timing." He sounded so bitter to Rey's ears. There was a lifetime of hurt behind his words.

Leia shook her head. "Nothing about this is convenient."

"Sorry to be such a big problem," Ben said, resting his hands in front of him on the table.

Leia reached for Ben's hands, but he pulled them away. "You're not a problem," she said.

"So you wouldn't mind if I stayed?' Ben said the words like they were a challenge.

Leia's silence spoke volumes.

"That's what I thought," Ben continued. "I should have expected this." He stood up and left the office.

Leia leaned her forehead on her hand. She looked defeated.

"Finn, could you go after him?" Rey asked. "It's not safe for him to walk around alone." If a hurt and angry Ben ran into the wrong person… things could get so much worse.

"On it," Finn said.

Rey gave him a relieved smile, and then she sat next to Leia.

She waited for Leia to speak first.

After a long silence, Leia straightened. Her body language was that of a woman who was determined to carry on with business as usual, but her eyes were those of a woman who had endured too much heartbreak. "That went worse than I expected."

"You expected it to go well?" Rey asked, not meaning to sound so harsh, but she was surprised by how little Leia understood her son.

Leia sighed. "No."

"You could have told him in a different way," Rey said.

Leia pursed her lips. "He would have had the same reaction."

"You don't know that."

"I do," Leia said. "I sent him away once, and he'll always remember that. It's a decision I'll always regret."

"You're stuck in the past," Rey said. Leia needed to move forward, needed to build something new with Ben.

"I can't reach him. Han's done a better job than me."

"They've had more time together," Rey said gently.

Leia shook her head. "And who's fault is that?" It was a rhetorical question. They both knew that Leia had prioritized work over spending time with her son in the past, and she hadn't spent much time with him since he arrived on Ajan Kloss either.

Ben hadn't said anything, but Rey was sure he had noticed.

Rey wanted to give Leia some words of comfort, but she didn't have any to offer.

"When you come back, I'll try to make things better," Leia said.

"When we come back," Rey repeated.

Leia nodded. "Tensions will be easier to de-escalate without Ben around. I'm not sending him away forever."

Rey leaned back in her chair and raised her eyebrows. "Maybe you should have opened with that."

"You're right. I should have."

Rey crossed her arms. "You hurt him."

"Better me than the increasingly violent faction led by General Cypress."

"Are you sure about that?" Rey challenged. "Because I think he can handle them, but I don't know how much more of getting hurt by you he can take."

Leia's composure faltered for a moment. "You've given me a lot to consider."

"I'm sorry if I was too harsh. I didn't mean–"

"Don't apologize." Leia touched her arm. "You care deeply for my son."

Rey was good at fixing things, but she didn't know how to fix broken relationships. She wished she could do more.

…

Leia called for Luke who accompanied Rey back to the Falcon. He and Finn were going with her and Ben, and Rey wasn't looking forward to telling Ben.

...

Rey and Luke walked up the Falcon's boarding ramp and found Ben and Finn inside.

Ben glared at Luke. "Finn mentioned that you're coming with us."

"I am," Luke confirmed.

"Great," Ben said, taking his bad mood out on Luke, "we've had such a great track record of me leaving with you. Let's try it again–"

"You're leaving?" Han asked.

Rey hadn't seen Han join them, and from the look on Ben's face, neither had he.

"I…" Ben trailed off.

Han wrinkled his brows. "What's going on?" He didn't sound like he appreciated being out of the loop.

"We're going to find the Sith wayfinders," Luke explained.

"Who's going?" Han asked.

"Me, Ben, Finn, and Luke," Rey answered.

Han shook his head. "No."

"No?" Finn asked.

"No," Han repeated, "you're not going without me."

Ben was staring at Han. "We're not?" he asked in a small voice.

Han clasped Ben's shoulder. "You can't get rid of me that easily, kid. You're not going anywhere without me."

Rey blinked back tears. She was so grateful in that moment that Han knew exactly what his son needed to hear. Maybe he would be able to help Ben and Leia fix their relationship. He had done a good job so far with Ben.

…

It didn't take long for them to prepare for takeoff, even with all the damage the porgs had done. It was like they knew what was nonessential.

Leia came to say goodbye, but Ben refused to make eye contact. She spoke to Luke briefly, and then she gave Han and Chewie both hugs.

Then she came over to Rey. "Take care of him for me, will you?"

"Ben doesn't need me to take care of him."

"Maybe not in a fight," Leia said, "but he needs someone to help protect his heart."

"I'll do my best," Rey promised.

Leia gave Ben one last look, and then she left.

Paige and Rose joined them just as Leia left. They took turns hugging Finn, and then Rose surprised everyone by hugging Ben. He looked stunned. Rose whispered in his ear and then pulled away.

Paige hugged him next, and Rey laughed. He looked so stiff and uncomfortable, but at least he hugged Paige back.

Rey hugged both sisters goodbye at the same time. "Thanks for looking out for Ben," she said so only they could hear.

Paige smiled. "He's not so bad."

"I'm starting to think my first impression of him was the right one," Rose said.

Things with the Resistance were bad, but in Rey's opinion, Ben had won over the most important Resistance members.

… … …

Rose and Paige stood outside the Falcon with Leia as the ship departed. It was hard to watch them leave. Rose was worried about Finn, worried about what would happen when he found more former Stormtoopers, or worse, what would happen if he was found by the First Order.

She was also worried about the rest of them. Mustafar sounded dangerous, and Kef Bir didn't sound much better.

Rose had to keep her mind on what she could control. "What's the plan?" she asked Leia.

Leia tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"We've got to make things better before they come back." Rose gestured at the departing Falcon. "How are we going to do it?"

Paige nodded. "It's gotten bad. General Cypress has more influence than I thought."

"Unfortunately, you're right. I hadn't expected so many to listen to him, but I have a few ideas," Leia said, a smile growing on her face, "and your help would be instrumental. Both of you."

Paige nodded. "Whatever you need."

"Put us to work," Rose said. She would do whatever was needed to help her friends.